New ERA Project...

[Akimbeau]

Hello, all. I’m happy to say I just joined the proud ranks of ERA owners. Club Cobra has been a tremendous source of helpful advice during my first Cobra rebuild project, a B&B 427 Cobra, so I’m hoping for the same as I launch head long into Cobra #2. I purchased a 2001 street 289 built by ERA . My plans are to change a few things to make it more of a comp model with a street interior. I might go full comp at some point in the future but I’m watching my budget so a little at a time to start. Being on a budget I’m trying to locate some parts I might need that are used and in good or restorable condition. I’ve spoken to Peter at ERA several times and he has been extremely helpful and I’m sure I’ll be getting a lot of parts from them but I thought I’d try to find what I can used first, the more money I save on parts, the more parts I can buy sooner.

Wheels…currently the car has bolt-on Torque Thrust wheels. I’m looking for either 5 pin FIA wheels(less expensive route) or 6 pin wheels and the necessary ERA hubs to match. Can anyone speak to using 5 pin wheels with adapters? I understand there might be some machining of the front hubs for proper fitment? I suspect it will be difficult to find the 6 pin hubs outside of going to ERA. Maybe someone wants to go to bolt-on Torque Thrust wheels and exchange parts with me? Plus a cash bump from me, of course.

Exhaust…The car also comes with under-car exhaust. Does anyone know if the comp exhaust will bolt on to my existing headers without modification? Are there any other sources for comp exhaust other than ERA for this vehicle? I’m interested in using a 2 pipe outlet per side version I have seen on some other comp cars. Anyone know a vendor for these that will work on an ERA? Again, if there is someone interested in going to an under-car exhaust that wants to trade parts, that would be swell!

Brakes…This car has the standard front brakes and I want to go to the biggest brakes I can that will fit the FIA wheels. I understand the front calipers are from a Camaro but don’t know what year model. Does anyone have suggestions for an aftermarket caliper/rotor kit that is a good upgrade for this car?

Suspension….I was seriously thinking about building an ERA but the wait time was too much for me. In researching the build, I was interested in the ERA rear end and, being just a $700 upgrade, it seemed like a no-brainer to get it. This car has the standard jag rear and to retrofit an ERA rear is an expensive proposition. Is this upgrade worth doing if I only track the car a few times a year? Does anyone have an ERA rear they want to swap or have laying around they want to sell? This last one is a long shot, I’m sure.

Windshield…Are the windshields standard on all cobras or are there differences between the manufacturers? I want to find a used windshield frame that I can cut down to make a short lexan windscreen. Does anyone have a beat up frame that will fit the ERA 289 I can buy for a song and a dance, or say $100 shipped? I’m not sure that what I have planned will work so I’m trying to keep the cost down.

Roll bar…I also need a 289 roll bar. Beat up paint is ok…I will be refinishing whatever I end up getting.

Well, this ended up being longer than intended. Not sure if I should have broken it up into separate topics. Thanks for any help you can offer! I’m excited about getting started! Just so you know, I live in the Los Angeles area.

[mrmustang]

ERA188 had a bolt on to knock off conversion done. In your case, instead of the 427 wheels, I'd suggest the 289FIA wheels

VINTAGE FIA 15 SERIES : Vintage Wheels, Mustang, Hot Rod and Muscle Car

Adapters

ADAPTERS,HUBS and FITTINGS : Vintage Wheels, Mustang, Hot Rod and Muscle Car

[Akimbeau]

Yep...talked to Bob at Vintage last week and if I can't find used I'll be going thru him for new. He set me up with the knock off 427 wheels I put on my B&B. It had a tricky offset that Bob nailed. They look great.

[1985 CCX]

Vintage is s great resource and Bob will get the right offset.
Awesome!

[DanEC]

Not sure they are a big improvement but there are these GM caliper replacements for the front.

SSBC Quick-Change Caliper Upgrade Kits A185-S - Free Shipping on Orders Over $99 at Summit Racing

I think there may be some Sierra brake kits to step up even further for an increase in rotor size.

The Jag suspension works fine in most driving - I would think that the more you beef up the front brakes the less the rear brakes will be doing. But tucked in under there they don't get much cooling and they are running fairly thin, solid rotors. There are some ways to modify the rear brakes by installing spacers in the Girling calipers to fit a wider, vented rotor, but from memory it's fairly expensive.

Basically, if you are really going to run the car hard on a long track, you are going to need big brakes and the ERA suspension is the most straightforward way to accomplish that - but at considerable cost. If you end up going that direction then you might as well really open up the pocket book and get a 6-pin conversion for the front as I think most if not all ERA rear suspension have 6-pin hubs.

Post some pictures of the car when you get a chance.

[1795]

As Dan says, if you are really planning on running hard on a track you probably want to go with the outboard brakes on the ERA custom suspension. Not only do they give you better stopping power, but also if you are driving hard you will be replacing rotors and pads more often and that is a LOT easier to do on the outboard brakes.

[Grubby]

I did the standard to ERA outboard swap on #755 and big front brakes as well. All parts came from ERA. It was pricey.

The swap is pretty easy. Setting bearing preload on the hubs is a bit challenging, if you have never worked on a Jag rear. I'm sure ERA would do that for you if it concerns you.

I did recover some of the costs by selling the old ERA rear, front hubs and brakes to a guy that was building a new ERA.

As others have said the standard brakes are plenty large and designed for cars that weigh much more than your Cobra. The fancy ERA parts are for cool factor or racing.

John

[ZOERA-SC7XX]

Wilwood has two-piston calipers that replace the standard Camaro/Impala (1978) steel units. Just measure your rotors, both dia. and thickness. You can also get Hawk pads made for street stock/Late Model stock cars that require stock type calipers that work well on track with 3600 lb cars (check out Speedway Motors catalog or online). You would have no problem with them. As for 5 bolt w/adapters, they look real and work just as good in my opinion. I have them from back when Lynn Park owned the company and have had no problems whatsoever. There are definitely ways to save a few bucks, but there are guys here who buy the best available regardless of cost and spend the big bucks for it. The Jag type rear is very good as long as you're not drag racing, and as noted above, you can get vented rotors for those too. The Jag rear is really easy to remove and repair, more so than you might think. I built my entire unit and installed it with only some tips from Doug. Just realize you are not building a pure race car here, or you would not be asking these questions. Peter and/or Doug at ERA will help with anything you need, either advice or parts procurement. Good luck with your Cobra project.

[xb-60]

Originally Posted by Akimbeau

.... a comp model with a street interior....

What do you intend doing with the interior? Are you talking a street dash, as in a drop-centre dash?

Cheers,
Glen

[Akimbeau]

Well, you can't put a price on the cool factor! I would wait on the rear end swap, see how I like the standard Jag unit over time, but the issue becomes getting 5 pin or 6pin FIA wheels...which I want to do ASAP. Anybody out there building an ERA? I got a rear end for you!

[ZOERA-SC7XX]

6-pin hubs are costly. Cost doesn't always = cool.

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by ZOERA-SC7XX

6-pin hubs are costly. Cost doesn't always = cool.

This is true. I have the six pin hubs and I'm the only one that ever sees them. I can't remember why I opted for the six pins, but I went with the ERA rear with the outboard brakes because it just looked so damn cool sitting there at the ERA shop. I have heard of some guys having trouble with the alignment of five pin wheels, but I don't know too much about that. Six pins are awfully cool though, even if you're the only one that knows you have them.

[lippy]

I have the jag rear and the 5-pin hubs. Both fine. Absolutely no problems.

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by lippy

I have the jag rear and the 5-pin hubs. Both fine. Absolutely no problems.

5-pin wheel issues?

[DanEC]

OK - 5-pin hub adaptors to be completely correct.

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by DanEC

OK - 5-pin hub adaptors to be completely correct.

Why is there a funky little alignment tool for 5 pins, but no such creature for 6 pins?

[1795]

Never had much of a problem lining up the 6 pins. Wheels go back on rather easily. Getting them off the first time after the prior owner had left them on for too long, now that was not so easy

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by 1795

Never had much of a problem lining up the 6 pins. Wheels go back on rather easily. Getting them off the first time after the prior owner had left them on for too long, now that was not so easy

So are threads like these: Five pin adapter problem a thing of the past?

[ZOERA-SC7XX]

You have a good memory. What I actually had to do was tap each stud with the lead hammer until the alignment tool/ring fit perfectly. It was as simple as that, just had to figure it out. And made sure I used plenty of anti-seize. No problems since. I think it was a $2000 difference, or something close.

[DanEC]

Originally Posted by patrickt

Why is there a funky little alignment tool for 5 pins, but no such creature for 6 pins?

I've never seen or used an alignment tool. Apparently it's not needed with Vintage wheels. I did experience one issue on my rear hubs - I had to shorten the lugs so they do not bottom inside on the studs. If not cut sufficiently to avoid bottoming they may cock slightly when torqued. I had one or two that ended up like that but after a quick pass with a grinder they torqued down fine and the wheels slid on fine. They do fit snuggly however - not any slop in the fit.